I never felt Bolton had a city feel, but having been to St Asaph, it's a lot more like a city than there!!! I never understood why UK cities didn't go off population, like in most other countries. Say 500,000+....?

Well Chelmsford has a bigger population, 169,500 v Bolton's 139,400. Chelmsford has a Cathedral and is the county town in a county with no other city in it. To be honest, Chelmsford doesn't feel much bigger than Bolton but I do think it deserves to be a city, may be more so than Bolton?

__________________Most of the stuff you see around you is the work of people no better than you or I.

Bolton has too many commuters to Manchester, and to a lesser extent Preston to fully function and flourish as an independent city. Bolton still retains a unique identity from Manchester, more-so than Stockport or the City of Salford however I don't think this is enough to set it apart from other areas of Greater Manchester, such as Stockport or even Wigan.

PLANS for Bolton's new transport interchange have been approved by the town's planning committee.

The new interchange will be built next to Bolton railway station, on land bounded by Newport Street and Great Moor Street.

The project, developed by Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) in partnership with Bolton Council, is an important part of the town centre regeneration strategy and marks the first phase in a series of developments in the area.

It will replace the existing Moor Lane station and offer better links between rail and bus services, as well as improved waiting areas and other passenger facilities.

Andrew Fender, chair of the TfGM committee, said: "I am delighted that we've secured full planning permission for this crucial development, which has evolved thanks to contributions and comments from the people who will benefit from it - the public.

"It is going to deliver a fantastic gateway for people living and working in Bolton, and for people visiting the town, and today's decision is an important milestone in realising that vision.

"I now look forward to progressing to the point where we can appoint a contractor and start work on the ground."

Leader of Bolton Council, Councillor Cliff Morris, said: "We're pleased that full permission has now been granted for this significant development. We're working hard to keep our town centre development programme moving and the transport interchange is a key part of our strategy."

A Compulsory Purchase Order has been made to buy the properties and land required for the development, which if granted could lead to the facility being open by 2015.

Plans for a £48m transport interchange in Bolton have been given the go-ahead by councillors.

Under the proposals buses will use a new interchange next to Trinity Street railway station instead of the current Moor Lane site.

The plans feature an enclosed pedestrian footbridge linking the bus and rail facilities, two lifts and a cycle centre with secure parking.

The plans were approved at a council planning meeting.

Councillor Andrew Fender, who is on the Transport for Greater Manchester Committee and was at the meeting, said: "It will give us much improved links between the rail station and the bus station next door."

Keith Davies, director of development and regeneration for Bolton Council, said: "It is a state of the art 21st Century facility, right in the heart of the town centre."

Mr Davies said the existing bus station site, near Bolton Market, would not be left to become derelict.

He said: "The council has committed £4.5m to refurbish Bolton Market which is a great facility.

"The old bus station site is right next door so it will clearly be a development opportunity.

"We will work with Transport for Greater Manchester to make sure that we've got something that works for the town centre as well."

The work, funded by Greater Manchester Transport Fund, is expected to be completed by the end of 2014.

Vue is bringing super-sized cinema to Vue Bolton with the launch of VueXtreme and an advanced screening of action movie The Hunger Games at 7.45pm on Thursday March 22nd - tickets on sale now!

The VueXtreme experience includes a super-sized screen that is bigger than two double decker buses, which is over 30% larger than regular cinema screens, delivering a new, unrivalled level of entertainment for cinema goers in the Bolton.
VueXtreme provides customers with a truly immersive experience by combining Vue’s crystal clear digital picture quality, professionally mixed Dolby 7:1 ‘Profound Sound’ and luxury ‘SuperVue’ tiered seating for a perfect view of the film. And for those who want even more luxury, Vue also offers VIP seating.

To be one of the first people to experience Bolton’s VueXtreme and see the advanced screening of The Hunger Games book now at www.myvue.com

BAM Construction has won five academy jobs in the past two weeks, bringing the number of schemes the contractor has won to nine, Building understands.

Today the firm announced it has been appointed the preferred contractor for the £11.5m All Saints Academy as well as the £9.6m Marine Academy, both in Plymouth.

Building understands the firm has also been appointed to three further academy jobs - which are yet to be announced, but are in the north, south east and midlands - bringing to nine the total the contractor has won.

The wins edges BAM close to Balfour Beatty, which as Building reported last week, had snared nine of the government’s fast-track academies, where a bidder has actually been selected.

A total of 71 fast-track academies will be built under the schools capital programme, announced by education secretary Michael Gove last year as a stop gap between the cancelled £55bn Building Schools for the Future Programme, and the government’s £2bn Priority Schools Building programme, which has been repeatedly delayed.

BAM has also won Kings Science Academy in Bradford, Kearsley Academy in Bolton, Aylesbury Vale Academy in Buckinghamshire, and Hackney UTC in London, since the framework was unlocked by the government in June.

On the All Saints job BAM beat off competition from Cowlin Construction and will partner with architect White Design on the project providing 4200 sq m of new build and a complete remodelling and refurbishment of the 1980’s east wing building.

On the Marine Academy project BAM beat Leadbitter and will partner with architect Stride Treglowen.

Graham Kingdon, area manager for BAM Construction, said: “We are very pleased to have been awarded preferred bidder on [the All Saints] contract, particularly after also winning the preferred bidder on Plymouth UTC and the Marine Academy Plymouth.

“Winning these contracts has been a key target for us as we want to invest in Plymouth as many of our staff and supply chain partners live and work in the area.

“We see Plymouth as an up and coming city and an important place to be doing business. This is why we have targeted these contracts and have worked extremely hard to offer the city extremely good value for money.”

RESIDENTS in Little Lever have one final chance to learn more about a proposed oneway system as part of plans to build a Tesco superstore in the village.

Planning chiefs will then consider the findings from Monday’s drop-in meeting before they make their decision later this month.

They had been due to reach a decision tomorrow but this has been postponed so they can gather reaction from the meeting.

The proposals by the retail giant to open a supermarket has divided opinion in the village, attracting both supporters and objectors.

Tesco announced plans to open a store on the former Pennine Pets site almost a year ago.

People who attend the drop-in session between 4pm and 8pm at St Matthew’s Church House, in Little Lever, can also find out more details about the company’s plans.Objections include traffic issues but supporters argue that a major supermarket would transform an “eyesore”

site and be a boost for the village.

Tesco has said the store will provide more shopping choice and create about 100 new jobs, in addition to the 49 staff employed at the existing Tesco Metro.

A Bolton Council spokesman said: “A highways officer will be in attendance to listen to resident’s concerns and take notes.

“The planning committee will now take place after April to give time to consider the findings from the drop-in session.“ Matt Magee, from Tesco, said: “The proposals have been well received, with 838 letters of support currently posted on the council’s website.

This highways drop-in session has been organised to provide local residents with the opportunity to find out more about the proposed changes to the local road network.”

Tesco said there were 117 letters of objection posted on the council website up to Monday.

HERE are the first pic- tures inside new luxury student flats at the for- mer Pack Horse Hotel in Bolton.

The £4 million revamp of the well-known town cen- tre building is still under construction, but 104 lucky Bolton University students will move in this Septem- ber.

Residents will have their own gym, a top-spec com- mon room housed in the former ballroom with pool tables and Sky Sports tele- vision, as well as an “aca- demic success centre” which will help overseas students with study skills.

More than 60 of the rooms have a kitchenette and every room will have ts own ensuite bathroom and flat screen TV.

Students can also pay extra to have a connection to satellite television.

The halls will have an on- site management team and be secured by key fobs. The luxury digs will also be covered by 36 CCTV cam- eras.

Developers also revealed that a disabled room would be installed on the ground floor, subject to planning permission.

Refurbishments are due to finish by the start of August and then rooms will be decorated before students move in the fol- lowing month.

More than 50 residents have already signed up to live in the halls.

Inquiries about the accommodation have come from France, Germany Italy and as far away as Malaysia,

Plans for the town's bus and train station redevelopment have taken step forward with government approval of powers to secure the land required.

Eric Pickles, Communities Secretary, granted a compulsory purchase order enabling the council to complete negotiations with landowners and tenants. The decision followed a two-day public inquiry held in the summer.

Cllr Cliff Morris, leader of Bolton Council, said: "This is excellent news and this decision marks another significant milestone in the delivery of this scheme. The interchange is a key part of our town centre development programme and supports our regeneration proposals for this area.

"We have already made significant progress to acquire the necessary land without having to go down the CPO route. Having the approval means that we can compulsorily purchase the land but we would only use the CPO as a last resort."

The Transport for Greater Manchester project is being developed in partnership with Bolton Council and designed by Aedas Architects. Full planning permission has already been secured for the bus station element of the scheme.

The project includes landscaping and public realm improvements which will support the wider regeneration of Bolton town centre.

Funding of £48m comes from the Greater Manchester Transport Fund. Subject to securing the necessary approvals the new facility could be operational by 2015.

Plans for a high quality commercial development on the site are also being developed.

Proposals made to develop the Reebok Stadium, Bolton Arena and the Middlebrook Retail Park

Proposals to develop facilities at the Reebok Stadium, Bolton Arena and the surrounding areas at the Middlebrook Retail Park have been announced by Burnden Leisure in conjunction with the Bolton Arena Trust.

These proposals are now subject to a public consultation process.

The development would include the construction of new sporting and educational facilities.

Ideas also under consideration include expansion of the West Stand at the Reebok Stadium to allow for further commercial opportunities.

“In 1996, the club's then board had the vision to build the Reebok Stadium,” said Chairman Phil Gartside.

“Now we are seeking to add to that vision with the planned creation of a major regional sports and education centre and offices at Middlebrook.

“This would maximise the potential of the existing facilities and develop further complementary elements.

“Our scheme includes working closely with the Bolton Arena Trust to reconfigure the Arena. This would lead to a new sports building and also an upgrade of the football pitches and other sporting facilities, which would bring further benefits and usage for the community.

“There are also plans to build a new education and welfare building at the Arena, along with the expansion of the West Stand at the Reebok Stadium.

“This would see the provision of up to 29,000 square metres of commercial and office accommodation adjacent to the stadium.

“In addition, we will continue upgrading our facilities at the academy, including permanent changing rooms at Lostock.

"These are all very exciting proposals and we will be working with local residents and all parties involved in these plans, as, together, we seek to make them a reality."

A brand new Costa has been built at the Bolton Retail Park, next to Decathlon. Quite a nice little building and seems to have appeared out of nowhere - I pass/use the retail park at least once a month and it has just appeared. Here's an article from January http://www.theboltonnews.co.uk/news/..._town/?ref=rss. It's the fifth in the town.

Also I heard through Twitter a new Starbucks has opened in Bolton, however I do not know where.

Plans for a giant £250m warehouse scheme in Greater Manchester have been unveiled.

Developer Howarth Estates is expected to submit a planning application to Bolton council for the transformation of the Cutacre site in the coming weeks.

The development, next to junction four of the M61 motorway between Over Hulton and Greenheys, will be re-branded as Logistics North.

Planning consultations will begin in Bolton and neighbouring Salford and Wigan boroughs in the next few days.

Howarth will develop the former opencast mine into approximately 247 acres of land for warehouses, factories, offices and other supporting uses.

It is believed discount retailer Aldi is close to agreeing to take the first warehouse at the site – a 500,000 sq ft property, the equivalent of six football pitches. The site will also include a nature site called The Cutacre Country Park.

It will surround the employment development and provide a 558-acre landscaped area for public access, recreation, nature conservation and agricultural uses.

Wildlife areas will be combined with panoramic views across the region to create a unique character for the park.

The development is a response to massive demand for new warehouses from retailers and from parcels companies, thanks to growing internet retailing.

Howarth, until recently a subsidiary of UK Coal, had been expected to develop the site with another property company, or to sell sites to raise cash for UK Coal.

But a change in the company’s ownership now means it can develop Cutacre itself.

Phil Wilson, executive director at Howarth, said: “We are engaging with potential occupiers and hope to be able to agree deals by the summer. The Logistics North site can serve the Greater Manchester market, and we are looking at a range of warehouse units up to 1m sq ft, also at manufacturers and offices users.

“We don’t see this as just a distribution site.

“We have now taken control of the site from UK Coal and have just let a contract to clear and remediate the rest of the site – work we would have done last summer if the wet weather hadn’t made that impossible.

“We hope those site works will be completed by late summer or the autumn.

“Once we have planning permission, we can begin to put the infrastructure in place to serve the first few plots.“

The plans come on the back of it emerging that 3m sq ft of warehouses were to be built at Warrington’s Omega South site.

The new office designed by architects Bradshaw Gass & Hope will accommodate 479 employees, creating 300 jobs when the building is finished in 2015.
Asons said there will be an "executive networking hall, a gourmet restaurant for business clients as well as glass projection technology that will transform one of the glass walls into an animated masterpiece." There will also be a "grown up playground for employees, an idea taken from the Google ethos".

Imran Akram, chief executive, said: "I've been to London, New York and Dubai; and Bolton really lacks that big commercial feel, the lights, the modern design, the fancy glass walls - I wanted to bring a bit of that to Bolton, hoping that other businesses with big ideas will follow suit. I think it'll brighten up the town centre nicely."

Upon completion, the building will also serve as the hub of operations for Asons, where satellite offices will then be developed in Singapore, London, Dubai, New York and Pakistan.

Founded only four years ago by brothers Imran and Kamran Akram, Asons Solicitors has grown from a three-man outfit in a converted terrace in Chorley New Road, to a law firm of over 270 staff, currently based at 120 Bark Street over three floors. - See more at: http://www.placenorthwest.co.uk/news....T3iIQiUA.dpuf

Developer-investor Moorgarth, backed by South African retail billionaire Christo Wiese, has completed the acquisition of Market Place Shopping Centre in Bolton and submitted its first-phase planning application for a £15m rebirth.

The first planning application was made days after buying the 400,000 sq ft centre. The design by Wren Architecture & Design is for the addition of a nine-screen, 1,200-seat cinema within the existing centre. The 30,000 sq ft cinema will be installed in part of the 640-space three-storey car park, with partial replacement of parking spaces above. Bolton does not currently have a town centre cinema and this is a council priority.

The design statement by Wren said that because the cinema will fit within the walls of the car park, the top level of the car park can be extended over the auditoria. Existing mechanical plant for the shopping centre will also be relocated up to this level.

The cinema extension at second floor will use a mix of glass, metal and polycarbonate materials on its exterior. A later application will be made to illuminate the cinema box at night.

Further applications will also follow to convert the basement brick vaults of the Victorian Market Hall at the south of the centre into 30,000 sq ft of restaurant space in seven or eight units. This will include opening up the floor to create views into the basement in the style of the arcades in Covent Garden, London.

Talks with the council and English Heritage have started and Moorgarth said it hoped to move this phase forward as soon as possible.

Market Place was acquired by Christo Wiese's Inception Holdings SARL, represented in the UK by Moorgarth, for £24m from administrators last month.

Moorgarth plans to halt and reverse the decline the centre has seen in recent years, when a number of key tenants closed or chose not to renew leases. There is a current void rate of 40%.

The redevelopment will include modernistaion of the 1980s north building including improvements to customer flow, new shop fronts, lifts and stairways. Units will be reconfigured to create trading floorplates more suitable for today's retailers, which often require larger areas.

There will also be click-and-collect locations for tenants and new loyalty schemes and events integrated into an online marketing plan.